


a love through time

by spacebarcode



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe, Chanlix(?), Fluff and Angst, M/M, changlix, i dont know how to add tags, if u squint, minsung - Freeform, seungjin - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-12
Updated: 2019-03-23
Packaged: 2019-10-26 22:24:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17754602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spacebarcode/pseuds/spacebarcode
Summary: Changbin tells the story of how he and Felix fell in love, through vhs tapes.





	1. Prologue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If i get any information wrong, I apologize in advance! I'm still pretty new around here, so please be considerate. I'll try to update as much as i can :)
> 
> Side-note: English isn't my native language, so feel free to correct me whenever i have errors in regards to my grammar or spelling, enjoy!!
> 
> (not proofread)

**_2012, November_ **

The sun was finally claiming it's throne in the sky, and upon the horizon you'll see birds flying south, their wings battling against the cold brisk air as they journey to the other end of the world, following the sound of the sun's inviting promise of warmth. The cold breeze meets every being outside, shivers and goosebumps settles beneath their skin, it remains heavy on their backs as they continue to go on with their day-to-day activities. Each individual had a specific destination in mind, a strong enough motivation to get them up and out of the house, a purpose; and Felix was no different to this.

In all honesty, he'd rather take the nearest u-turn slot and go back home to his loving husband, maybe even try finishing off some paperworks he had taken home from work, work that literally costs his entire body and soul, it's the type that'll drain the life out of you- like what his colleague Woojin keeps saying each time they see each other at the office whenever Felix had to drop off some files: "It's a job that kills, but it at least pays the bills!".

So Felix was actually considering on turning back around and heading home, cancelling on his plans with his friends and diving back into the comforts of his fresh laundered linens. He's pretty sure he can come up with a good enough excuse, he's done it a couple of times before, and it flawlessly worked each time. And he knows that if the worst case scenario comes, He can gift the couple a few scented candles and a box of donuts, Hyunjin would instantly melt and forgive him after, he's a hundred percent sure of it.

But alas his thoughts are disturbed by the sudden speech from the navigation app obnoxiously telling him of how he has _arrived at his destination_. He doesn't even know why he chose to use a navigator, he practically has the address memorised and knew all the possible routes to this house, he's even confident enough to say that he can come here when he's missing a leg and has a blindfold on, which is an exaggeration of course (not really).

After double-triple-checking if his car was locked, he walks up the porch thinking if turning back was still an option. It wasn't as if he was a bad friend, he actually remembered dates pretty damn well, it's just the idea of being up at 8 in the morning and driving all the way here wasn't very appealing to the sleep-deprived man, considering the fact that Felix is already in his mid 30's he's impressed that he was even able to get up from bed- Felix is an old man let him complain, that's what he thinks at least. 

And he honestly wasn't surprised when Seungmin swung the door open before he could even lift a finger, he had an instinct that Seungmin had some weird sixth sense when it comes to him and his bullshit. It seems as if Seungmin was always a step ahead of him with his antics, and if you were to tell Felix that Seungmin had learned all these from a book he bought at the dollar store that had _How to Deal with Lee Felix_ written in bold at the cover, Felix would say you'd be lying because the latter would've bought it from target, because he at least was deserving to be sold with class. 

Or maybe it's just Seungmin being a nosy friend back in high school and reading Felix's not-so-gay of a diary back then.

"I'll never know how you do it," Felix chuckles as he walks past the taller, making his way towards the living room, he at least had the right to lounge around the couch for a while, maybe check on the stock market, y'know _adult stuff_

"You just reek of bad decisions and stupidity is all" Seungmin scoffs playfully as he shuts the front door, following the older to the living room where they both find Hyunjin who was busy rummaging through boxes of old stuff, sleeves rolled up to his elbows with a pink hairband on top of his head, he seems weirdly unbothered by it.

"Very mature of you Hwang Seungmin" Felix snorts as he launches himself into the couch, groaning in relief when his back meets the soft cushions of it

"Be careful old man" Seungmin jokes as he settles himself beneath a few layers of blankets, Felix assumes that it was where he initially was before he had arrived. 

"Old man? You're the same age as me!" 

"Okay that's enough you two, will you stop acting like a bunch of twelve year olds and actually help me find my adapter" Hyunjin speaks up

"Adapter?" Felix questions as he gets into a more comfortable position, sitting upright

"Yeah, we were planning on watching some vhs-c tapes on Hyunjin's vcr. Y'know we can watch those ugly graduation videos we filmed back in high school, and maybe watch some from Hyunjin's school as well" 

"So you had me up this early because you promised me that we'll be watching films and will be planning about Chan's surprise celebration party for his promotion, when all we're doing is watching embarrassing videos from high school?" Felix sighed, burying his face into the palm of his hands

"Yeah pretty much," Seungmin shrugged as he takes off his glasses and sets his laptop aside,

"You should pick some tapes to play, I'll try looking for the adapter upstairs" Hyunjin says it more to Seungmin as he goes up the flight of stairs, Seungmin kneels before some boxes as he begins his search for the said graduation tapes 

Felix shakes his head as he remains unmoving on his spot on the couch. There was no point in arguing now, realising that he actually needed the couple's help to plan the party, since he obviously didn't know how to throw one. So he sat there in silence as he looked through the cozy home, eyes scanning through the small knick knacks and ornaments in the house. The usual picture frames and figurines replaced with wreaths and Christmas lights, which was substantial since it was already late into November and Christmas was just around the corner. Felix might be even thinking of going on a Christmas shopping spree himself to decorate his own home for the holidays, not as well as Hyunjin though, how could he ever beat an interior designer when all he has are financial statements and balancing sheets in hand. 

Now that he has thought of it, he didn't know why it felt like seeing Hyunjin decorate a barbie house was such a long time ago, when in fact he had only met the latter in college. Or when Seungmin had began to take interest in social sciences and politics, the boy eagerly sharing his thesis with Felix, even before college. All the memories has faded so much so he couldn't even remember what he had aspired to be back in high school, of what sort of childish dreams he had back then. He smiled when he remembered that of course naive Felix had dreamed of pursuing dancing and becoming a prodigy of a career with no certainties of success, an unknown path that he may have taken in another life but not in this one. And he's quite content with his status as of today, he has everything he had ever wanted and couldn't ask for more. 

"Here we are!" 

Felix's thoughts are yet again interrupted, and this time it's Hyunjin who comes back into the room with a shabby box of metal covered with dust with an adapter in hand, he doubts that it even works anymore seeing the state of the vcr. He plugs the cables in and jumbles with a few adapters before finally being able to start up the antique vcr that was holding itself on by it's last threads, or shall I say plugs? But nevertheless it's still working, and so the nostalgic marathon begins.

They start with a few of Hyunjin's old tapes from high school, to which the couple laughed and conversed about. Felix wasn't really paying attention because he was looking through _'Seungmin's'_ box filled with tapes, looking for nothing in particular, but it was still worth a try. A few more minutes of wheezing a little from the dust, his eyes land on a neatly separated stack of tapes that had _For Felix_ written on them, each tape had a date scribbled onto them, Felix doesn't remember telling Seungmin to keep a stack of vhs tapes for him, heck he doesn't even remember being given one. 

Hyunjin's graduation video finished just in time as Felix questions about these mysterious tapes that he has no memory of, the dates don't even mark important days, and like what I said Felix is **really** good with his dates. 

"I don't remember being given a stack of vhs tapes back then? Do you mind explaining to me what these are?"

_"Those were Changbin's, he wanted me to give them to you"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It gets better I promise! I'm sorry if the beginning's quite slow and is more on seungjin centric, but we'll be starting with the tapes next chapter. 
> 
> Comments and Kudos are greatly appreciated, I'll update this as soon as I can :)


	2. VHS C TAPE 1 - JULY, 1993

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh yea, we're in an American setting btw! Just a heads-up :)
> 
> **Once again, not proofread**

**_1993, July_ **

_"Jisung I'm renouncing the deal, this is a stupid idea,"_

_"Well we both know you're doing this because you love me!"_

_"I'm just doing this for a dunkaroo, not for you"_

_"Stop stalling and just try it!"_

_"Jisung I swear to god if I-"_

_"Just trust me! "_

_"Alright I'm doing it! Make sure the stupid camcorder's turned on"_

_"This is going to be so cool-- Oh wait!"_

_"What is it now you lil brat?"_

_"I think I see some kids from our school! Let's go show off some your rad skills!"_

_"Jisung, wait!"_

 

 

Changbin blankly stared at the lines of the paper in front of him, subconsciously nibbling at the tip his pencil's eraser, a habit he has yet to get rid of. There was something oddly off about today, the breeze seemed different compared to yesterday. Maybe it's because it's abnormally muggy today, in spite of what the weather forecast his mom watched each morning has said; it was supposed to drizzle today. 

Or maybe it was because of the uncomfortable layer of sweat that had accumulated on his neck and back, sticking to him as if it was a second layer of skin. That although his frail stand fan was on it's maximum mode, it still seemed as if there wasn't a single vent inside his small room, he even went as far as opening his windows.

Or maybe it's because of the annoying sounds of cicadas outside, buzzing loudly throughout the hot summer morning. It was like someone was holding a megaphone over them, because Changbin found them more irritating today than he'd normally would.

Either way Changbin was on his wit's end and everything was closing in on him and his nerves. He averts his attention back onto the stupid spiral notebook he was staring at for approximately 15 minutes now, he throws his pencil on top of it and shoves it off his desk as he pushes his chair back. He lets out a guttural groan once his chair hits the corner of his bed, going back towards his desk to turn his cassette desk on. He increases the volume until it drowns out the sound of the buzzing of his fan and cicadas, maybe he's even trying to drown out his thoughts.

"Honey, can you please turn it down?! I can't hear the lottery results" His mother shouts from downstairs, Changbin only rolls his eyes and increases the volume until he couldn't turn the knob anymore.

How can he write lyrics when he's locked up in a room, there's only so much to write about here. So he decides to go over at his best friend Jisung's home, it was a place he had frequented in, and wasn't much of a difference from his home, but it was at least a change of scenery. He grabs the spiral notebook and shoves it into his backpack, taking his walkman on his way out, not bothering to turn off his cassette desk that was blasting music at full volume. 

He heads downstairs and sees his mom sat on a love seat, a mug in her left hand as she twirls the spoon with her right. She didn't bother looking up, but instead told him to be home before dinner and that his dad was having guests over by then. He halfheartedly nods as he slams the door behind him, plugging in his walkman as he walked over to his bike. 

It was a small neighbourhood, he didn't need to ride his bike since Jisung's home was just a few blocks away, but if he says he wants to ride a bike, he'll ride his damned bike if he wants to. His music blasts through his headset as he deviates from his usual route to Jisung's house, taking a little tour of his own around their small town. He watched people get in and out of their homes, some were gardening and others were simply enjoying the summer day. He passes by the usual diner he and his friend Jisung would frequent at, they went there to do shit usual teens do without getting nagged by their parents about homework. But they stayed for the outdated jukebox and watered-down milkshakes that only caused a buck or two. 

He passes by the little shopping district, showcasing newest must-have trends today, most of the stores displayed various models of neon windbreakers, which were definitely sore for the eyes, but they at least were colourful enough to make people look less depressing, Changbin was actually considering on buy one once he gets his monthly allowance. He also saw a few kids around his age hanging around the famous skatepark that had just opened two months ago, and the place already reeked of teenage angst, it was swarmed by teens the second it opened, but no one actually skated and tried the slopes; Changbin actually thought it was a drug lab at some point, with the amount of sketchy kids going in and out of the place. 

When he finally arrived in front if the Han's residence, he goes straight for the fence at their backyard to park his bike beside the treehouse, he knew how Jisung purposely leaves the backdoor unlocked so Changbin doesn't have to call their telephone, they can't be bothered anyway since this home has become Changbin's second, and he was always welcomed by Jisung's parents. The boy knocks softly before entering the house, it seemed empty, he assumed that Jisung's parents were off to church again, considering the fact that it was Sunday. 

"Jisung?" Changbin calls out as he walks up the flight of stairs, gripping the strap of his backpack as he prayed to whatever god he believed in that Jisung better not have his hand down his pants just because he was home alone. 

Luckily he hears Jisung's humming from his room, the door slightly left ajar. Changbin enters without warning and startles the poor boy out of his own skin, Jisung clings onto the discman in his hand, hands over his heart as he scolds his friend for almost causing him a heart attack. Changbin sticks his tongue out as he throws his backpack onto the floor and launches himself onto the latter's bed, ignoring Jisung's protests that _he just finished making his bed_ ; something along those lines.

"Jeez! You could've chatted me before coming here" 

"AOL's server's down, and I don't wanna call through your telephone, my mom likes listening in on our conversations" Changbin says truthfully as he shifts to his side to face Jisung who was seated on the floor, as if there wasn't a desk chair behind him.

"No one uses AOL anymore! Yahoo's where everyone's at" Jisung scoffs as he crosses his arm against his chest, _he's doing it again_

"Now what the hell is this yahoo thing? I've only heard about it once, no one uses it!" 

"Excuse me? Even my mom knows how to use yahoo, you're just an old man who can't keep up with technology!"

"Stop trying to sound like a hipster, I saw you changing your buddy profile last night! _Hi from snapple_ " Changbin mocks Jisung, doing his best impression of the boy in front of him

"I've always knew you're a liar, lying to your own best friend?! _AOL's swerver's down, oh yeah I checked your buddy profile last night_ " Jisung mocks him back

"And that's why you're my best friend, you're a lying rat like me" 

"We compliment each other so well" JIsung gushes as he stretches his legs across the carpeted floor, "So what brings you here anyway? Weren't you working on your _fabled_ mixtape?" he adds

"I wasn't feeling it today, so I decided to bother you instead" Changbin answers blatantly once again as he plays with the loose threads of his jumper, which silenced the other 

"Is it about your dad again?" Jisung questions, his voice softer this time

"Hmm, go on" 

"Let me guess, it's cause he's bringing over some stupid colleagues over and he wants to show off his trophy wife and polished son?"

"Ding! Ding! Ding!" Changbin tries his best to imitate a bell, like in the game shows that he sometimes watches, Jisung just got the cash price perfectly 

"And you want to stay the night here like the brat you are, worrying your poor parents" 

"Alright that's enough, you've hit the million-dollar price already, will you stop?" Changbin fires back, a little irritated with Jisung's tone of voice 

Jisung raises his hands in defense, knowing that he was now overstepping boundaries. The boy tries to look around his room to see what they can do for the time being, since the diner was usually closed around this time, the owners weren't ones to miss church, so the diner won't be open for another hour or two. Jisung bites the inside of his cheek and smiles when he sees Changbin nibble his fingernails, well old habits do indeed die hard, they both definitely needed to get rid of these small gestures. 

"Do you wanna try going to the skatepark?" 

"Are you crazy? There'll probably be crackheads beneath the slopes, and you forgot the fact that neither of us knows how to skate?"

"Sounds like the perfect summer activity to me" Jisung shrugs as he leaves the room for a moment, entering his older brother's room to get the skateboard the latter used to own, when he still lived here. 

"I don't know Sung, I want to write lyrics, not break a bone."

"Well it's better than staying caged up in this room, why not get inspiration from the outside world! Come on grandpa, live a little."

"First of all, I'm just a year older than you so I don't understand this obsession of you calling me grandpa, and second of all-"

"You talk to much!" Jisung interrupts Changbin before he could continue, already pulling the latter up and out of the door. 

 

 

"This is going to be so cool, go on try a kickflip!" Jisung says excitedly as he pointed the camcorder towards Changbin's direction who had all the possible protection gear on him, legs a little wobbly as he fought to keep his balance on top of the board.

"How on earth will I be able to do a kickflip when I have literal chicken legs!" Changbin says as he spreads his arms out, trying to keep his balance and not falling to his death 

"You're so lame," Jisung lowers the camcorder as he watches Changbin step off the board, falling to his knees once his feet meet solid ground, "And apparently, a drama queen" 

"Shut up!" 

Jisung snorts as he climbs up one of the slopes, sitting at the edge of it, waiting for Changbin to follow his lead. And as expected the smaller boy sits down, legs still a little bit wobbly from the amount of stress he just experienced. Jisung exaggerates the sigh that he leaves his mouth, looking up to the sky he felt Changbin's gaze at the side of his face, _"I'm going to have my way, whether you like it or not Binnie"_ Jisung thinks to himself as he pouts and snaps the clapperboard slates inside his mind.

"Y'know my brother used to ride his skateboard everyday and tried teaching me some moves, and we've always wanted a skatepark of our own. It's too bad that dream only came true when he left"

"Whatever you say dimwit, you don't even know how to skate," 

"Well I used to know how, that was until I tore my achilles tendon back when I used to play... sports" 

"Hmm is that so?" Changbin answers back sarcastically as he swings his legs left to right, he can't believe Jisung would actually think he'd buy this garbage of a story

"Okay fine, I'm lying damn it! What do you want?"

"It has just come to me as a realisation that my pain is your entertainment huh?" Changbin rolls his eyes as he watches Jisung eagerly nodding his head, waiting for the older of the two to make a deal.

"Unlimited dunkaroos for the rest of the summer and I'll do it"

Jisung laughs out loud after Changbin's offer, such a shallow request that can be simply granted with just a few trips to the convenience store. So he agreees to it and stands up from his seat, turning the camcorder back on as he waited for Changbin to "suit up" or put on all his protective gear again. He takes a few seconds longer, suddenly regretting his decision while he stood in front of the skateboard in front of him. The fact that they were still on top of the slope wasn't helping Changbin's anxiety, what has he gotten himself into?

"Jisung I’m renouncing the deal, this is a stupid idea," Changbin says as he feels his stomach do backflips as he looks over to his left, the slope downwards was just a few meters away from them 

"Well we both know you're doing this because you love me!"

"I'm just doing this for a dunkaroo, not for you" 

“Stop stalling and just try it!"

"Jisung I swear to god if I-"

"Just trust me! " 

"Alright I'm doing it! Make sure the stupid camcorder's turned on"

"This is going to be so cool-- Oh wait!"

"What is it now you lil brat?"

"I think I see some kids from our school! Let's go show off some your rad skills!" Jisung says as he suddenly pushes Changbin off the slope

"Jisung, wait!" Changbin squeals as he closed his eyes, ready for some sort of excruciating pain somewhere in his body, _well life was fun_

Changbin does feel himself speed down some sort of slope, but it felt like it was to short compared to the one they were at, what the hell was happening? He gathered the courage to open his eyes once he hears a chorus of laughter resonate from in front of him, and of course it's accompanied by Jisung's obnoxious laughter as well. And when he finally did open his eyes, he realised that he had gone down to the smaller slope beside the one they were at, and here he was, in front of two _cute_ boys, who were giggling because of the scene. 

"Um hi," Changbin says nervously as he shakily try to find his footing back on land, kicking the stupid skateboard away

"Changbin! You should've seen your face, it was priceless-- Oh hello there" Jisung says as he approaches his friend who was still awkwardly stood in front of the two boys, trying to keep his laughter down as more people began to look over their direction

"Hi," The boy with strawberry blonde hair replied as he tried hiding the smile from his face by taking a sip from his drink, biting on his straw shyly.

Changbin looks over to the blonde, and he didn't know why but he couldn't help but just stare. There was something weirdly captivating about him, the freckles that covered the majority of his flushed face, the summer heat ripens the apple of his cheeks, a natural blush. He also had such pretty eyes, eyes that lit up once Jisung spoke up, but Changbin couldn't be bothered to listen to what the latter said, and did Changbin mention that he had the cutest smile? 

"Will you two stop checking each other out? It's making me uncomfortable" The brunette speaks up, he says it with such an unpretentious tone that it made Jisung choke on his own spit, trying to keep his composure.

"Seungmin!" The freckled boy exclaims as he hits his friend's back, eyes downcast as he blushes a deeper shade of red

_**CUTE** _

"Anyway! Hi there, I'm Han Jisung and this is my idiot of a friend Seo Changbin, nice to meet ya!" 

"The name's Seungmin, and beside me is my panicked gay of a friend Felix" Once again _Felix_ hits Seungmin's back

"Um okay, so we we're heading out now," Jisung says, unsure of how he could end the awkward encounter to save his friend from further embarrassing himself 

"We were planning on going to the diner, mind joining us?" Changbin asks out of the blue, which shocked both Jisung and the pair from the sudden invitation 

"I mean, why not? We have nothing better to do, right Lix?" 

"I guess so..." 

Changbin smiles as he tilted his head towards the direction of the diner, motioning for them to follow him, and he leaves without another word. He keeps on walking without looking behind him, since he hears Jisung start a friendly conversation with them. And sooner or later his friend does catch up and swung an arm around Changbin's shoulder, saying that the two were just going to meet them there since they had to take their bikes with them.

"So, what was that all about?"

"What was what all about?"

"That!" Jisung says as he points in the general direction of the skatepark behind them, trying to emphasize his point, but ends up looking like a mime

"I was just being nice! Don't be an ass Ji, you still owe me like, a lifetime supply of dunkaroos"

"Whatever, I know you like him" Jisung wiggles his eyebrows 

"Did you just make an assumption of my sexuality?! How dare you? I'm 100% straight" Changbin replies over dramatically placing a hand on his chest 

"Keep telling yourself that you dweeb, you still have all your gear on" Jisung snorts as he runs off, Changbin suddenly feels embarrassed for have walking this far without noticing. He threatens to kill Jisung and his whole extended family for have letting him walk like this, he chases after Jisung who was running for his dear life towards the diner.

 

 

 

_"Say hi to the camcorder!"_

_"Jisung put that away, you're embarrassing!"_

_"Shut up Changbin, you'll be thanking me when you're rewatching this and telling your children of how you and Felix met and had your first date"_

_"I honestly wouldn't want to tell the story of a ‘first date’ with my children if it’s with a guy who squealed like a twelve year old girl while going down the lowest of slopes I have ever seen"_

_"Seungmin!"_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Are the transitions weird or confusing? I'm not quite sure, tell me what you think! 
> 
> Comments and Kudos are well appreciated! Thanks for reading ^^


	3. VHS C TAPE 2 - FEBRUARY 1995

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not proofread and kinda shitty, but hey i tried ;;

**_1995, February_**

_"I'm sorry for getting you dragged into this,"_

_"Will you two just shut up and dance?"_

_"Why do you even need to record this Jisung? Don't try playing matchmaker on me just cause you're lonely-"_

_"Stop talking and just grab my hand!"_

_"I-I don't know how to dance..."_

_"Just follow my lead and trust me. Do you trust me?"_

_"Of course I do, Lix-"_

_"You two are cute and all, but can you hurry up? I wanna wallow in self pity and chocolate, but I kinda need my best friend for that!"_

 

 

Felix stares at his reflection, the water ripples as he swings his feet back and forth. His pants haphazardly folded up to his knees, which actually didn't do much since the fabric got wet whenever he kicked his feet up. He begins to bop his head when a random pop song plays, aimlessly pulling out a snickers bar from his pockets. He rips the wrapper and takes a big bite off the treat, mind wandering back to how this god awful morning began. 

He woke up two minutes before his alarm, showered and ate his sister's cereal without her permission, kissed his mother goodbye before grabbing his backpack and heading out. He greeted Mr. Kim next door who had finally hired a handyman to fix their sprinklers, headed straight for the bus stop where he and Seungmin met up. Rode at the back of the bus with his friend, went to school and thought that everything was oddly going very well today. That the morning has gone by smoothly, there was of course some sort of catch; and of course reality finally hits him once a girl approaches them at the school gate, with shaky hands and a hopeful twinkle in her eyes while she hands Seungmin a bunch of flowers and a chocolate bar; _oh yeah it's valentine's day_.

He didn't despise the idea of having to dedicate a day for couples to have an excuse to be extra touchy and to boast about their relationships, a day for them to pretend that there's no such thing as personal space, since they're either making out or cuddling down the hallways as they walk towards their classes, how do they do it? Felix doesn't know and need to care. He also wasn't surprised when he sees some dude carrying his girlfriend in his arms as if they were newlyweds, he may or may not have exaggerated that one, he'll leave it to you to interpret that. 

Once again, there isn't a reason for Felix to hate this day because he knows that valentines isn't just about having dates with your significant other, and spending money on useless gifts- he has a feeling that the government only had this day as a holiday as an excuse to make people spend money for gifts because damn the economy is shit. Anyway that's a discussion for debate with Seungmin, but he at least knows that today’s a day celebrating love through species. And besides Felix gets to eat free chocolate from Seungmin's never ending lineup of admirers, and as his best friend he gets VIP access to his friend's paper bag full of love letters and sweets, he sometimes likes reading some of the love letters to Seungmin; the two of them giggling at some of the most ridiculous confessions.

What made him so upset however was the fact that Changbin hasn't asked him out yet, he was sure that the latter has feelings for him and he's pretty sure he has expressed his interest in the older countless times in the past. Felix just can't believe that Changbin hasn't even said hello to him today, he hates how he sounds desperate, but he knows that he is, he just wants a boyfriend okay? Because as much as he hates to admit it, he was hoping that Changbin was going to confess today, sweep him off his feet with some corny ass confession that can only come from the stupid rom-com movies Felix had forced him to watch. 

Felix is snapped out of his daze when he feel something nudging his back behind him, he's assuming that it's SOMEONE since he honest to god didn't think ghosts would even find him here. He looks behind him to see a Changbin with a small smile plastered across his face, hands placed cooly inside the pockets of his jeans- speak of the devil. Felix takes off his headset as he looks up at Changbin, a smile of his own mirrors the one the latter has.

"I knew you'd be here," 

"You do know that this is an off-limits room, I can rat you out and get you expelled" Felix says with raised eyebrows, taking another bite from his chocolate bar

"Or you can share some of your chocolate so you can convince ME to not rat you out" 

"Well having the student body organization's vice president as a best friend has its perks, so I'd like to see you try." Felix pokes out his tongue as he silently invites Changbin to sit beside him, waiting for the older to fold his pants up and to dip his feet into the pool as well. 

"It's a miracle that Seungmin lets you get away with this type of shit, he isn't as strict as he says he is"

"He's a control freak, trust me. He just loves me too much is all" 

They both fell silent as the sounds of their feet swishing around the water echoes throughout the room, the distant noise of music playing from Felix's headset buzzes between them. Felix hums along to the melody even though it wasn't as clear, he had given the rest of his chocolate bar to the boy sat beside him. He only notices the paper bag beside Changbin when the older pushes it towards him, saying that Seungmin wanted Felix to have it; _more chocolate bars and flowers, great!_

"He has so many admirers each year, I don't get why they don't ever give up" Changbin speaks up as he takes a rose from the bag, admiring it in his hands

"Everyone just kinda loves him I guess? I don't even know what they see in him, he's the devil's incarnate" Felix chuckles as he takes the rose from Changbin, plucking a petal and throwing it into the water

"Well enough about Seungmin, who's your valentine? Or who do you at least want to be your valentine?" Changbin wiggles his eyebrows playfully, subconsciously bringing his fingers up to his mouth to bite his fingernails 

_You_

"I don't know," Felix sighs, plucking off several petals from the rose before throwing them into the pool

Changbin frowns as he rummages his pockets for something, he pats the front and back of his jean pockets and Felix just looks at him with curious eyes hands clutching the 'rose'. Changbin smiles in victory when he finally pulls out a couple of spare changes and some bubble gum wrapper, pushing his hand towards the blonde. Felix's eyebrows furrowed as he looks at the latter's hand in confusion, mouth opening to say something but immediately closing when his gaze meets Changbin's.

"Happy Valentines Lix," Changbin's smile grows bigger and shines brightly as takes Felix's hand to place the money onto Felix's softer palms

"Thanks?" 

"I know it's not much, but I'll buy you a milkshake at the diner later if you want! I'm not just giving you some spare changes, oh god what did you think I was doing?"

Felix giggles as he feels heat travel up his neck, the rose completely forgotten and placed beside them. Changbin nervously rubs the back of his neck saying that didn't go as planned, and he was explaining that it was such a good idea in his head, that it seemed charming. Felix's smile only widens as he watches the older try to explain himself, spluttering out excuses, completely forgetting about his _cool_ facade. And Felix only realizes that he's been staring at Changbin without uttering a word himself, so he speaks while Changbin continues to explain.

"I know it's not chocolate and may not be much but-"

"Shut up,"

"I-"

"Of course I'll let you treat me later," 

"Why didn't you just say so in the first place? You had me embarrass myself trying to explain-"

"Shut up Changbin!" 

 

 

 

 

The day continued on with a blur, the only thing that rung in his mind was the scene at the pool where he and Felix quietly held hands until they had to go their separate ways for classes. He hates how he feels like he's back in middle school again, he hates how feels like holding Felix's hand was his first time. He hates how he's acting like a lovestruck kid who has nothing better to do but daydream about Felix, he knew that they clicked well from the moment he and Jisung met him at the skatepark two years ago, but why couldn't he bring himself to admit that he HAS feelings for him.

He was immediately brought back down to earth when he remembered that Felix must want a relationship because of his indirect yet _charming_ confession, and he sadly couldn't say the same. It wasn’t just because of his trust issues or crippling anxiety, he just feels like high school relationships like these never lasts, and he definitely wanted Felix in his life, so why was he afraid? Maybe it’s because of the uncertainty that their relationship may not work out once they make things 'official', it's a risk Changbin isn't willing to take; a risk of loosing Felix. 

_You're overthinking this Changbin, you're still young and people naturally come and go. Why not risk it? You'll never know_

Changbin frowns to himself as he grabs some books from his locker, sighing when he remembers that he had to go by the shops today to buy some blank tapes, it's finally time for him to record his fabled mixtape. Maybe he’ll even try to submit it to some local radio show his dad listens in on every morning. But that mixtape's not getting into anyone's hands before Jisung does; because he had promised him this. 

A blindfold suddenly covers his sight and he groans dramatically, slamming his locker door shut and jamming the keys. He tries to raise an eyebrow and begins talking to the person behind him, trying to explain that he had to leave since he still had cram school to attend and that he didn't want to participate in any of the dumb booths some clubs have done as a fundraiser. 

"You don't even study," 

Changbin mentally rolls his eyes once he realizes that it's Jisung, and amazingly he wasn't surprised that his friend had set him up for his club's stupid booth. This was an annual thing and Changbin doesn't even know how he forgot about it, he had nothing else to do but follow Jisung, blindly guided by his best friend to an unknown location. There was no point in denying since he knew how much this meant to Jisung, knew how much Jisung loved his club, so wasting around 15 minutes for it won't cost Changbin much. It's also because he didn't have the strength to fight or argue anymore, so he willingly followed what he was told to do. 

As soon as they stopped walking, Changbin opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by some club member's voice. Changbin crosses his arms across his chest, tapping his foot impatiently against the wood of the classroom's floor. He didn't bother listening in on what the club member was saying, he just couldn't wait to get this over with and leave. 

He feels someone loosen the knot on his blindfold and removing it, granting him his vision back. And it takes a few seconds before Changbin was able to adjust to the dark lighting of the room, squinting at the faces present inside the room. Some of which he knew, but it was too dark to see anyone's face clearly. The room was covered in red and pink streamers and heart shaped crepe papers hung from the ceiling, stuff they probably bought at the dollar store nearby the barbershop where Changbin had his first haircut. Changbin also noticed that the only thing that served as a source of light was the small candles placed around the room. Tables and chairs neatly stacked upon each other at one side, the floor was also covered in rose petals, and a disgustingly sweet scent of vanilla wafts throughout the small classroom. 

Changbin only realizes that there was soft music playing when he sees Jisung smile and wave at him with a camcorder in hand, of course. He stands awkwardly at the center of the classroom waiting for something to happen, he was completely lost. He felt uncomfortable as people stared and swayed to the melody of the love song playing from the boombox at the corner of the room, it was also painted pink if that detail was worth mentioning.

"Jisung what cult is this and why am I here?" Changbin finally speaks up which makes a few of the people inside the room laugh, and he couldn't help but laugh awkwardly along them

"Be patient, I don't know what's taking them so long" Jisung scolds as he lights another candle that had gone out 

Changbin rolls his eyes and relaxes, eyes darting across the room as he cooly placed his hands inside his pockets. His head snaps towards the door once he hears muffled chattering and yelling, he raises an eyebrow as they all wait for _it_ to enter the room. And surprisingly Seungmin enters the room with Felix blindfolded, there was another club member with them, but Changbin was too busy gawking at Jisung to notice. 

"Oh no," Changbin starts 

"Oh yes." Jisung maniacally laughs as he turns the camcorder back on

"Jisung! Why did you have to pick Felix, I'm sad and lonely and I need my best friend to rant." Seungmin complains as he desperately clings onto his best friend, which was weird since Seungmin was usually calm and collected each time Chagbin sees him. 

"Seungmin this will only take a minute I promise" Felix giggles as the girl behind him removes the blindfold, his gaze meeting Changbin's 

They both awkwardly smiled at each other and Jisung tells them that they have to slow dance to one song since an _anonymous student_ has paid and requested for it. Changbin snorts at his friend's use of the word anonymous, because he was obviously playing matchmaker since the day they met Felix and Seungmin. Felix couldn't hide the smile on his face and begins walking towards the older, eyes sparkling as he offers Changbin a hand.

"What happened to Seungmin?" Changbin immediately asks when they meet halfway in the middle of the room

"Oh you know, he confessed to that one girl he's been crushing on and got rejected. He's been going on about independence and how he doesn't need a girl to be happy, so he's thinking of going on a road trip this summer, since we're turning seventeen and all that shit-"

"That's personal information Lix! Why would you share that with Changbin?!" Seungmin yells in the background which makes the two laugh

"Anyways, I'm sorry for getting you dragged into this," Changbin starts as he meets Felix's gaze awkwardly looking at Felix's hands

"Will you two just shut up and dance?" Jisung says while he looks for a good place to take a shot of this moment 

"Why do you even need to record this Jisung? Don't try playing matchmaker on me just cause you're lonely-"

"Stop talking and just grab my hand!"

Changbin pauses to look at his feet, forgetting that there are people watching the two of them. He bites at his nails as he mumbles a response and Felix leans closer, asking the older to raise his voice since he couldn't hear him properly. And Changbin bravely looks back into Felix's eyes, cheeks a little bit red as he admits:

"I-I don't know how to dance..."

"Just follow my lead and trust me. Do you trust me?"

"Of course I do, Lix-"

"You two are cute and all, but can you hurry up? I wanna wallow in self pity and chocolate, but I kinda need my best friend for that!"

Everyone groans when Seungmin speaks up and he raises his arms in defense saying that he has the right to be bitchy, because of his luck. What wrong did Seungmin do in his past life that was so severe that luck decided that _“yeah the whole school likes you, except for that one girl you’re obsessed with; sorry man.”_. 

The room finally goes quiet once a new love song plays and Felix takes the opportunity to wrap his arms around Changbin's waist and begins to softly sway, Changbin follows his lead and places his hands on the younger's shoulder. 

Everyone coos at the two of them, but Changbin couldn't help but let the dumb smile plastered across his face grow bigger when Felix whispers something softly against his ear, words that only the two of them could hear and the camera wasn't able to pick up. But whatever it was, it made Changbin weak in the knees and he accidentally steps on Felix's foot.

He panics and begins to profusely apologize but stops when Felix laughs at him and bumps their noses together, eyes smiling as he begins to playfully spin and dance around the room with Changbin in tow, and Changbin couldn't help but laugh along Felix as they danced across the room. And for a moment Changbin feels happy, for a moment he felt like the world was finally silent and the two of them were dancing to the beat of their hearts; and Changbin didn't want it any other way.

 

 

 

Seungmin and Felix were going through some of the gifts they have received today, more specifically Seungmin's, since Felix only has a half empty cup of milkshake from when Changbin treated him. Seungmin was neatly stacking the letters he had received inside his small box promising to read them later when he has the time. He wasn't heartless to let the letters go to waste, and he made sure to apologize and let down those who have confessed to him in the nicest way possible.

"Minnie here's the paper bag you gave me earlier, there's still some flowers inside. They're really pretty, do you want them? We can give them to your mom, I'm sure she'll appreciate them." Felix asks as he pushes the blue paper bag towards his friend, Seungmin shakes his head in confusion

"I don't remember giving you a paper bag Lix? These two are all the bags I have today?" Seungmin says as he raised the two brown paper bags in hand to emphasize his point

"Didn't you ask Changbin to hand it over to-" Felix stops before he could finish, brain finally catching up to what happened

Seungmin smirked at him and began to tease how disgustingly cute they are and Felix never got to hear the end of it, and he didn't quite mind it as he admires the yellow dahlias.


End file.
